


"I Have a Little Dreidel…"

by magician



Category: The Sentinel
Genre: Established Relationship, Ficlet, Hanukkah, M/M, The Sentinel Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2019-02-27 09:58:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13245819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magician/pseuds/magician
Summary: Blair and Jim spend a Hanukkah evening at home.





	"I Have a Little Dreidel…"

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2017 TS Secret Santa Drabble Days for the prompt: Hanukkah. https://ts-secret-santa.livejournal.com/

"You're home early," called Blair from the kitchen. As he walked over, he gave Jim an appraising look. "What happened to you?"  
  
Jim shrugged. "Just got a little dirty chasing a perp. I don't know why they always run."  
  
"Hail my conquering hero," Blair said, laughing. He reached up to give Jim a light kiss, then wrinkled his nose. "Go grab a shower. Who knows what's in that slime."  
  
Fifteen minutes later, Jim exited the bathroom, dressed and toweling his hair. He noticed a small wooden object and a pile of foil-wrapped chocolate coins on the counter. "Hey, babe, what's all this?"  
  
"The wooden top is a dreidel and the coins are called gelt. Kids play the dreidel game at Hanukkah. You win or lose coins depending on what you spin."  
  
"Ah, a game of chance. Can we play for something other than chocolate?" Jim asked with a lascivious grin.  
  
Blair laughed. "Yeah, we can use anything for tokens, Mister One-Track-Mind. But not tonight."  
  
"So, where'd you get these?"  
  
"From Mrs. Birnbaum. I was helping with her groceries. After I carried everything in and helped put them away, she patted my cheek and said, 'such a good boy'. Then she gave me the dreidel."  
  
Jim picked up the little top and examined it. It was plainly varnished, but the painted symbols were colorful and delicate. He gave it a tentative spin. "Nice balance," he remarked.  
  
Blair pointed to one of the symbols. "See this? That stands for the Hebrew word 'pey', which means 'here'. In most of the world, dreidels have the symbol 'shin' on that side, and all four together stand for the phrase 'A Great Miracle Happened There', for the miracle  of the oil at the Jerusalem temple. But dreidels made in Israel after it became a nation use 'pey', which changes the phrase to 'A Great Miracle Happened _Here_ '. This came from Israel. Before she emigrated here from the UK, she spent time in Israel in 1949 and bought it there." Blair looked at the dreidel and said softly, "She has no kids to leave it to, so she gave it to me. It's beautifully made, and I've never owned one."  
  
Jim took Blair in his arms and gave him a long kiss, then grinned and pinched his butt. "So, are we going to play or what?"  
  
"Yeah, with Mrs. Birnbaum. I told her we'd bring dinner tonight." He went into the kitchen and picked up a Dutch oven and a covered dish. "I got a brisket, zucchini and carrot latkes, a challah and jelly doughnuts." Blair looked out the window. "It's almost sunset. We'll light the candles, say the prayers, then eat and play."  
  
Jim smiled. "Sounds like a perfect evening, babe. What can I carry?"  
  
"That bag," Blair said, pointing to a shopping bag on the table. "Put the dreidel and gelt in there and we're good to go. Oh," he added, "Careful, there's a bottle of wine in there."  
  
"Manischewitz?"  
  
Blair made a face. "Nah, just a good red wine. But it _is_ kosher."  
  
Jim patted Blair's cheek. "Such a good boy," he laughed as Blair rolled his eyes. "Let's go have a Hanukkah feast."

 

 

[ ](https://ic.pics.livejournal.com/ainm/517157/18936/18936_original.jpg)

**Author's Note:**

> The picture comes from the Thought Co website "The Dreidel and How to Play It". The story's title is the first line of the song "Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel"


End file.
